Edson Program Backs Student Businesses

If you're a skateboarder, animal lover, teacher or alternative-energy supporter, there's something to catch your attention in this year's crop of student-run businesses newly planted at SkySong, the ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center.

The Edson Student Entrepreneur Initiative has chosen 16 proposals for funding of $2,000 to $20,000 starting July 1.

Twelve of the ideas are new this year, while four were funded last year and proved promising enough to win a second year of funding.

The new business ideas were selected out of a record 146 applications.

"Every year the competition gets a little more fierce and the quality of presentations gets better," said Scott Perkofski, Edson program manager.

The initiative started in 2004 when John Edson, who founded the Bayliner Marine Corp. company in his garage and grew it into the largest manufacturer of pleasure and luxury boats, gave Arizona State University $5.4 million to foster student businesses.

Since then, the program has financed and mentored more than60 young ventures, both for profit and non-profit.

Read the full Arizona Republic article.

Emerging Nonprofit Leaders earn Scholarships

Three ASU American Humanics (AH) students have been awarded Next Generation Nonprofit Leaders Program (NextGen) scholarships.

Jessica Brzuskiewicz, Korbi Adams and Megan Pfleiger each will receive $4,500 from NextGen as part of a multiple-year Kellogg Foundation Grant to American Humanics Inc. to support students across the American Humanics campus affiliate network.

The NextGen scholarships support costs associated with the students’ senior internships in nonprofits.

• Adams, from Olympia, Wash., is interning with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Adams, who is the former American Humanics Student Association vice president of operations, parliamentarian and Ironman volunteer captain, is interested in education and community outreach for an orchestra.

• Brzuskiewicz, from Fountain Hills, Ariz., is interning with the American Cancer Society of Portland, Ore. She is the former American Humanics Student Association department chair for fundraising, and she is interested in working in human services or community outreach.

• Pfleiger, of Chandler, Ariz., is interning as a development intern working on a major fundraising event with the Aperture Foundation in New York. She is the current American Humanics Student Association parliamentarian, and she hopes to work for an arts-based or faith-based nonprofit in fundraising or special events.

“The financial resources necessary to complete an unpaid or low-paying internship out of state is very challenging,” says Stacey Freeman, senior program coordinator for ASU AH. “This scholarship helps bridge that financial gap – and, in turn, all three students were able to pursue an internship with an organization that they are passionate about.”  Read more.

Cronkite Captures SPJ Three-peat

For the third consecutive year, students from ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication have finished first in the Society of Professional Journalists’ highly competitive intercollegiate news contest.

Cronkite students won four first places in the Mark of Excellence Awards and were national finalists in three other categories. The University of Missouri and the University of Montana finished second, each with three first-place winners and two finalists.

Cronkite students won in all of the major categories: print, television, radio and online journalism. Read more.

ASU Grad Ready to Devote Life to Helping India's Poor

While many of her peers who graduated from Arizona State University this spring are looking for jobs, Heather Murphy of Phoenix has set her sights on creating them.

The 21-year-old graduate of ASU's Barrett Honors College is intent on helping India's most vulnerable people - widows of suicide and poor villagers.

So instead of scour he job market, the first thing the honor student did upon graduating in May was establish a non-profit organization, the Women's Entrepreneurship Initiative.

Her mission: Provide grants and micro-loans to potential entrepreneurs who have few, if any, options in life.

Read the rest of this Arizona Republic article here.